I woke up at 3 am. I left for the airport at 4 am. I am in a true negative energy spiral. A lot of things have gone wrong and the trip has barely started. First, I almost forgot my camera batteries and memory card. That would have been bad. Next, I left my blank check in my other wallet. I hope they accept credit cards. I could also do an online transfer. Next, just as I was about to clear security, they halted the whole line. Someone breached security. Then, they decided to search my bag. My bag is often searched because it is over-stuffed. I was surprised by the number of people in the airport at 5 am. I barely made it to the gate for boarding. That is so unusual for me. I tend to get there very early. Did I mention that my duffel bag is falling apart? The strap is ripping off from the bag. I left my AAA card in my other wallet deliberately. I think I should have brought it. I hope I can get a hotel discount. I have two layovers. That will be slightly painful. All of these things happened before 6 am !!
I am on a plane headed toward SF. The next plane leaves almost as soon as I land. I hope that I make it.
The layover in SF was only fifteen minutes. In fact, it is the same plane that is taking me to Denver. I should be in Moab shortly. The plane is not full. I have space to stretch out. I have honed my traveling skills. I wear travel pants with lots of pockets. I wear shoe/sandals that are extremely comfortable. I pack everything into one duffel bag. I have a compact noise reduction system. I have all of my bathroom stuff in one small bag. I have my universal adapter and my battery power pack.
I am in Denver. I have a two-hour layover. I am almost there. Thank God. I forgot my check. That was the exact thing I did not want to do. I called Maggie of Magpie Cycling. She was reassuring. However, they charge 3 percent extra for credit card use.
I am riding on the smallest commercial plane that I have ever ridden. The seats vibrate. It gives me a kinky feeling. The take-off was scary. The entire plane shook. It is smoother now. The scenery is incredible - Rocky Mountains.
I have arrived in Moab. The "airport" is tiny. I am waiting for the cab. I want to go straight to the bike shop. The skies are blue and the rocks are red.
I made it to the Poison Spider bike shop. I am a little early. The cab ride cost fifty dollars. Outrageous! When I go on vacation, I feel as if I am being financially raped. Egypt was the worst. Taiwan was the best (in terms of cheapness).
I am in the motel. I forgot my AAA card. I did not get the discount. I met the other bikers and guides. I think it will be a good trip.
I am trying to get to sleep, but it is a cheap motel with paper thin walls. Moab is a one-street town. The scenery is beautiful. It is all about tourism here. I am planning my next trip. I am thinking about Hawaii - a multi sport adventure.
I woke up at 3 am. We have to meet at 8:30 am. Maggie is going to pick me up. I am excited about this trip. There are three guides: Mike, Sam, Eugene. A family of three will be going: Mike, Caroline, Alex. Eugene, a mechanic at Poison Spider, is going. Alex is a 12 year old kid. If he can make it, I can make it. It seems like a very well-prepared trip. This motel is a dive.
Maggie picked me up right on time. We drove to the Red River Canyon shop. We met everyone in the parking lot. We packed up our vans and headed out to the trailhead. We will be biking on the White Rim trail.
It was a twenty-minute drive to the trailhead. It was a perfect day for riding. Blue skies and 70 degrees. The views were fabulous. The first part was a steep descent. It had many switchbacks. The twelve year old kid was the strongest rider. He led the pack the entire time. It was tough in some spots. There were a lot of hilly parts. We ate lunch at the half way point. We saw the "goat island" of the canyon. We saw Musselman's arch. It is a bit scary. It is a narrow arch along the canyon. I walked on it and had my picture taken. Thank God that I survived. It would have been a long and painful fall. We saw the various bends of the Colorado River.
It is so quiet now. Not a peep of wildlife or mankind. Just a gentle wind. In our modern world, I do not think that I have ever experienced true silence. I am listening to pure silence. The ride was five and a half hours and 17 miles long. It was not bad, except my rear end hurts. I took a hundred photos. One of the riders, Eugene, is a strong rider. He is going on an extra eight-mile ride roundtrip to see the Colorado River. My only problem with hiking/camping in general is the bathroom accomodations. I have a weak stomach and often have to evacuate myself. It is difficult to do so while hiking/camping. Other than that, I love it. I love the exercise. I love the sense of accomplishment. I love the peacefulness of the outdoors and the beauty. I love the companionship. It really is an adventure. I am so happy when we are sitting together and eating dinner after a strenuous day. There is nothing better. I think that EC would have liked this experience.
What a dinner! Salmon and fresh burrito. Definitely an A plus meal. I am satisfied. It has been an incredible trip. The weather is awesome. The people are friendly. The food is fantastic. The scenery is breath taking. I am totally satisfied. It is 8:30 pm and I am tired. Sweet dreams!!
It is 1 am. I made a BR run. I feel so relieved. It is a perfect night: not cold, not windy, totally silent. I ventured out with my headlamp. I am nearly blind at night without contact lenses. It is so peaceful. Yesterday was the perfect day: great riding, great people, great scenery, great food. Mike is an entrepreneur who starts companies. It sounds like he is doing well. My rear end is sore. I hope I can make it tomorrow. Caroline and her family travel a lot. They spent 9 weeks in Africa. She recommends GAP adventures.
What do I seek?
I seek perfect days. I seek strenuous days of effort rewarded by the satisfaction of accomplishment and the joy of a meal and company.
It was a perfect day. I woke up at 7 am. We ate breakfast and packed up. We left camp at 10 am. We biked until 3:30 pm. We had the same lunch as yesterday. The trail was tough at times. I stopped quite a bit. The last part was hard: uphill on sand. We got to the camp and set up. Afterward, we went on a hike to a peninsula. It had great views. Throughout the day, we had spectacular views. Once again, dinner was superb. Sunset was 7:30 pm. I went to sleep at 8:30 am. It was an exhausting ride. At times, I was huffing and puffing. Overall, it was the perfect day.
I slept sporadically last night. I have a sleep problem. It is chilly, but not windy in the morning. No noise at all. I am happy to be here. I have realized that I like strenuous tasks with a definite ending. I do not like ambiguous ongoing events. I am thinking about making a bathroom run. The same negative thoughts have passed thru my mind: sa, ma, sr. I have to turn to positive thoughts: riding with awesome scenery, eating great food, companionship.
Today was the perfect day. It started off with a great breakfast: bagel and lox. Eugene Cathcart rode off early. He had to go back to Moab: 80 miles. The ride started with a long descent. Then, we hit a hilly part. Afterward, we hit five stinger hills: steep ascents. I made it up only one without getting off my bike. The final ascent was called Murphy's Hogback. It was very steep and long. I made it a quarter of the way up and then walked up. Mike the guide rode up all stingers and hogback without stopping. We had lunch on top of the hill. After, we rode down the hill. There were steep descents and good gradual descents. It was the most enjoyable day so far. We got to camp at 4:30 pm and walked around. We had another great dinner: falafel. The previous dinners were chicken and salmon. The food has been tremendous. We had a long chat session before dinner. The weather has been perfect: blue skies, seventies, no wind. The family I am riding with is awesome. They travel a lot and have great stories. They live in Vancouver. It has been an amazing trip from all perspectives. I am sad that only two days are left.
It has been very therapeutic to go riding every day and not have to think about anything else.
I slept pretty well last night. It is 6:30 am. It is cold, but not windy. I love this weather. It should be another great day. I cannot believe that it is the last full day of riding. My legs and rear end feel pretty good.
I read that one of the suspected killers of EC had a death in his family. His brother was killed. I had strange feelings about it. On the one hand, I thought it was cosmic justice. Now, he will feel the pain of losing a loved one. Does he feel pain? Does he have a conscience? Is rehabilitation possible? What is the proper punishment?
On the other hand, I thought it was just another senseless death of a young person. There is too much tragedy and injustice in this world.
It is great being in a desert for a short while. I have no tv or internet access. Every modern world problem is distant from my mind. I just want to bike, eat, chat with my fellow riders, and find a good bathroom.
It was a great ride today. Sam was the ride guide. We went for seventeen miles. There were a few tough spots. We had a tough ascent right before lunch. It was three inclines. The last one was steep. I had to push my bike up that point. We ate lunch on the plateau: hardscrabble hill. It was a hot and sunny day. Once again, there was a clear blue skies and mild breeze. After, it was tough in parts. We had one steep descent and a long stretch of desert sand at Taylor canyon. We ran across ten motorcyclists who kicked up the sand at Potato bottom. That was annoying. We arrived at Labryinth camp around 3:30 am.
We are chilling out by the van, in order to get shade. I made a small trip down to see the water. We are camped out on an overlook to the Green River. We made a couple of small side trips today. In the morning, we went to the Hogland slot canyon. Sam took us thru the narrow canyon by foot. It was fun. In the afternoon, we walked over to see an ancient Indian granary. We saw some artifacts. It was a beautiful day.
The camps that we stayed at were named Airport, white crack, candlestick, and labyrinth.
It has been an incredible day. We had a great meal: american bison!! We saw the international space station fly past in the sky. There are no clouds. The stars are visible throughout the sky. I am totally satisfied by the trip. I learned to do stemming in the slot canyon : horizontal position. Interesting story: Lin Ottinger used to park his van on Musselman's arch. It freaked out his passengers. The biking has been sensational: ascents, descents, views, perfect weather. Biking thru sand was painful, but that was the only downer. When camping, I expect bad food and bugs. But, we have had neither. The people have been great.
It was an incredible day. I cannot believe that I made it. We started off the day with a great breakfast. We chatted for a while. Mike tells great stories. We started riding at 10 am. It was a short ride today: 8 miles. We went through horse thief canyon. We saw the horse corral that Butch Cassidy used. The last part was tough. It was a 1.5-mile ascent. I stopped multiple times and mostly, walked my bike up the hill. Caroline made it all the way without stopping. I was the weakest rider in the group. I need to exercise more often. We met Maggie at the top. She was pretty cheerful to see us and I was happy to see her. We ate lunch. Maggie drove me to the airport and their family to Moab.
I am hanging out at the Canyonland fields airport. They have an incredible deep-seated sofa. I have a deep sense of satisfaction.
Ugh!! They charged me fifteen bucks to check in one of my bags. I am kind of angry about it because I was able to carry it on the previous flight. It is kind of a back-to-reality ending to my trip.
It has been a harrowing experience getting home. I thought I was going to die on the plane ride to Denver. The plane was shaking violently. There was a downdraft of wind over Denver. They delayed some planes. I landed at concourse A. I had no idea where to go to catch my connection. It turned out that concourse B is the United terminal. I barely made it. It is a good thing I checked in the bag because it would have been really heavy to lug around. We are boarding the plane.
I saw my bag enter the baggage compartment from the window of the plane. It is totally reassuring to know that it will not be lost. The flight is two and a half hours. I am glad that there was now layover time. That is usually painful.
Thursday, March 26, 2009
Saturday, March 7, 2009
Taiwan
I got to the airport early. I took a two hour nap at the terminal. The first flight is to Japan. The plane is pretty large.
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I am still on the plane. It has been 7 hours so far, on a ten-hour flight. It has been very comfortable. I chose a seat with lots of leg room. The flight is not full. There is no one sitting on my right. I have a layover in Japan. I want to buy a bento or sushi. I look forward to it. I love the taste and nutritional value of japanese food.
I have not seen my relatives since 1991. It has been a long time.
My life is somewhat empty. I feel like I have no greater purpose or achievement to which I aspire. I ask: what am I doing?
I have to give my final toastmaster speech. I do not know what to talk about. I am at a loss for words. I have to inspire an audience. I cannot even inspire myself. I am inspired by Edmund Hillary: respect and admiration and won the hearts of all.
1. Winning respect thru achievement and skill
2. Winning hearts thru compassionate service.
Inspirations: Lance Armstrong, Teach for America, angels in caring., biker's toys for tots.
I am thinking about asking someone out. I have to pray about it. I am not sure. My life has not been straightforward.
I still have left knee pain: better with use, no point of tenderness, pain with extension of knee, lateral aspect of left knee.
I arrived in Japan. I am waiting for the plane to Taiwan. It is on time. I am tired. I need to go to the br, but it is full. I cannot get a seat. I have to hold it. I hope my mom is at the airport to pick me up. I have no back up plan.
I found a seat at the BR. hooray!! I feel so relieved - in more ways than one. I am almost there. I think that I take a lot of trips, just to have the feeling of "getting there". Taipei should be warmer than Tokyo. I lost a day. It is Saturday night now. I look forward to eating and seeing relatives. My life is pretty mundane. Does anything change? Maybe, I am lazy. I wish I had some yen. I would buy sushi. Who am I? What am I doing? I have no idea. I am Somebody. But who is it?
We are starting to board.
From now on, I want to take group trips. Two types exist for me: sight seeing and adventure.
Obama really is a global person: white, black, yellow. I am a narrow person: yellow, somewhat white.
It is amazing how the little things in life make a big difference. I had a dust speck caught under my contact lens. I popped out the lens and washed it in water. I put the lens back in my eye. I did it on the plane. Praise God I did not lose the lens. I feel so much better having cleaned it. Small things, like relieving myself in the br, make my experience so much better.
I made it! My mom met me at the airport with no problem. That was the difficult part since I had no plan B. I got thru customs quickly and picked up my luggage. I met my mom and then we wandered around for a while to look for a bus. We found the bus to Taipei. After a one-hour ride, we arrived at a stop near my aunt's place. I had to go to the br. I must have a digestion problem. My stomach is not adapting well to the food. We arrived after midnight. It has been a good trip. The plane ride was not too bad. I slept during entire trip from Tokyo to Taipei. I cannot believe I am here. It has been nearly twenty years. My aunt looks pretty young for seventy (actually she is sixty five). It is tough not speaking the language. My mom is the translator. Back then, I was such a different person. I was bookish and introverted. Still am. But my inner self has totally changed.
I have this overall feeling that my life is not leading up to anything. I have no family and no real purpose. I read "The Call" by Os Guiness. It has not really helped me. I am still clueless as to MY call. I think that overseas trips help me to get a better perspective on my life. I can step out of my regular life and examine some of my assumptions.
A generation has certainly passed. I am middle aged. I am not in the current generation.
I think that my developmental problems started early. I was Asian, but could not speak Chinese. Shame, self consciousness, introversion soon followed. My thinking turned inward. Success became an all encompassing goal. Everything else was secondary. That led to estrangement and social delay. My life took a bad turn. The calamity of failure turned me around. It re-aligned my thinking in a more proper way.
I woke up early. We went to a local place for a quick breakfast. Now, we will go to my cousin Peggy's place.
It was a great day. We went to the national museum. I saw a lot of interesting historical objects. I usually do not like museums, but this one was pleasurable. We had lunch on the fourth floor cafe. Afterward, we saw some more objects and went to see the Beitou hot springs. We rode buses and subways to get there. It was good weather - not too hot nor too cold. We saw the hotspring museum, the actual hot spring, and the library. Afterward, we went to a classy restaurant and had a satisfying meal. My time with the cousins was satisfying. They lived in the U.S. for 4 years. I was impressed by everything they saw. We went parted ways and I went to my aunt's home and had deserts. I saw my other cousin and his wife. He is a dentist. I went to sleep early.
It was a fun day today. We woke up early and drove to the Yangming mountain. We saw the cherry blossoms, but they were half bloomed. We walked around the park area. As we were driving away, we drove past the Chiang kai shek residence. At first, we thought it was closed on Monday. Luckily, during cherry blossom time, it was open. We had a tour guide who showed us around the house. It was an incredible experience. A beautiful house on the mountain with spectacular views. I was happy that we saw it. It was my mom's first time. We drove home. There was a huge traffic jam going up the mountain: single lane. We had beaten the rush; we were headed downward. I am so pleased that we went up early and saw everything in the morning. We were the only ones in CK Shek's house. We got back by noon. I took a nap after lunch. At 2 pm, we drove to Tamshian: fisherman's wharf. It was north of Taipei. One hour drive each way. We got back and met up with my aunt. We went to dinner at a fancy place. Overall, it was a good day. Tomorrow, we are going on a tour. The conversation occured between my mom and aunt. I cannot speak chinese. My uncle does not speak much.
How has EC influenced me?
1. Be politically active
2. Host parties
3. Constantly learn
4. Connect with more people
5. Travel more
My future plan: Dems, house, adventure trips, medical missions, blogs
We woke up at 6 am. After a quick breakfast, we got a ride from my uncle to the train station. We arrived an hour early. We met my younger uncle, ugoo. We took the train from Taipei to Hualien. Three hours. We were met by our tour guide, Mr Chen. Just call him Nicholas. He took us to a restaurant for lunch- decent authentic food in an old wooden structure. Then, we drove to Taroko park. We saw the global climate change exhibit and watched a nature film in an air conditioned auditorium. We drove to the gorge. We stopped a few times and went for leisurely strolls along the gorge. I took a ton of pictures. It was a beautiful day for walking. It was slightly overcast and somewhat windy. The scenery was spectacular: a gorge with a river, waterfalls, and stone cut outs. We arrived at our hotel at around 4 pm. We went to a local buddhist temple on the mountainside. It was a beautiful view of the gorge. I climbed up one of the temples. It was a bit frightening since the railing was low. I felt like I was going to fall over. It was incredibly peaceful. I think I could find myself if I spent a week meditating there. A bridge over the gorge leads to the temple plaza. After climbing a few stairs, the temple plaza is reached.
We went back to the hotel and showered off. We had dinner at 6pm. It was a great meal. Ugoo was a bit pissed off that the entire trip cost too much. For me, it was worth it. I think that it comes out to a thousand dollars per person for five days. That is not bad compared to all of my other vacations. Tomorrow, we have to wake up at 5:45 am. We will be going thru caves and along rivers.
We went to sleep last night at 7:30 pm. It was a long day, so I had no trouble falling right to sleep. I woke up at 5 am. I had some strange dreams last night. I dreamed of SA. It was the first time ever. She was pretty but older. I had no desire to be with her or possess her. I am not sure what that dream meant. Also, my left knee is back to normal. I thank God truly. It was a small miracle. It was hurting for a while. On the plane ride, it was stiff and painful. Now, it feels pretty good. I climbed a six-story temple yesterday and I did not feel any pain. Right now, it is 5:30 am and we are preparing to start hiking this morning. It is dark outside and we have to wear our headlamps or bring flashlights. What am I doing in life? That seems to be a persistent question. Living for the moment. I will meet my cousins, uncles, and aunts on Sunday.
We got back from the hike. Incredible hike!!! We hiked along a gorge. We ended up in two areas that were breath-takingly beautiful. One area was a convergence of waterfalls and rapids. We crossed a bridge and had spectacular views of the river below. Later, we got to the Water curtain cave. We put on ponchos and went into the cave. Water poured down on us. The roaring sound, feel of the water, and darkness of the tunnel made it a memorable sensuous experience. During the hike, we crossed thru many tunnels. I wore a head lamp. The total trip was about an hour. It was a flat and easy stroll thru very scenic areas. We got back to the hotel and had breakfast. I saw a beautiful chinese woman (with her boyfriend). All in all, it was a good start to the day. I think that we will drive along the coast now.
I am just hanging out by the gorge. Perfect weather - blue skies, humming river, canyon views. I walked across the bridge to the temple area. Today is the perfect day. The hotel looks like an old warehouse from the outside. From the inside, it is a five star hotel. The food is great.
I hiked up to some kind of memorial. I could not read the chinese characters on the marble wall. It was good exercise. The sun beat down on me as I trudged up the steps to the granite wall with the chinese characters. Once again, you guessed it: it had great views of the hotel and the gorge.
We went to another part of the taroko park. We saw the same nature film as yesterday. I was bored. Before the film, a taiwanese speaker spoke for ten minutes. It must be a chinese tradition for speakers to talk before films. I understood less than five percent of her talk.
It has been a great day. We drove out of the gorge and out of Hualien. We had a very good lunch. We ate some taiwanese seafood which was a special delicacy. It was a five star food experience. Then, we got some slushie deserts and drove out of town. We took a scenic road along the ocean. We stopped at an isolated beach area. We had to get out of the van and into another one which took us downhill to the beach area. It was an interesting spot. It had wooden statues of people and animals. I took a ton of pictures. We walked around the beach. There were very few people there. In fact, almost no one was there. After, we drove away along a sea front road. We stopped at another beach area on the side of the road and walked around. I think that we are in the south part of Hualien. We are staying at a quaint mom-pop type of hotel. Good views of the water and the mountain. Two things to mention. First, the Taiwan bathroom quality is not too bad. In fact, it is much better than what I remember. No gross out places. Not quite up to Japanese standards, but not too bad. Secondly, Ugoo is one strange dude. I am not sure which characteristic is strangest about him. He persistently belches. I think he has a medical disorder. Also, every time he talks, he seems pissed off. I think that his business is losing money and he is angry about it. He reminds me of the hunchback of Notre Dame. He is the hunchback of Hsinchu.
Our tour guide is a good guy. He speaks mandarin, so I understand only a fraction of what he says. He is pleasant and helpful.
Ugoo paid for the dinner. He does have some redeeming characteristics. It was the best seafood I have ever had. The fish and shrimp were freshly caught and alive prior to the meal. It was a run-down restaurant. The meal cost thirty dollars US. I have had much worse meals for a hundred bucks.
I think that I will turn in early tonight. Overall, it was a satisfying day. I ate well, I saw a lot of great scenes, and I hung out with my family. Pretty good time. Also, the weather was perfecto!! It was 70 with a nice sea breeze.
We woke up at 5 am. I went to sleep at 8pm last night. I have been sleeping pretty well. We will go for a walk on the beach.
If I had to live over again, I would do these things:
1. Ask SA about the situation and her feelings, instead of reacting in anger
2. Join clubs. Focus less on academics
3. Travel more
4. go to a small liberal arts school
Now/future:
1. Adventure trips
2. Singing
3. Public speaking
4. Making movies
5. Physical achievement: hike
6. Photos
I need to practice:
1. Moving forward
2. Holding in and re-considering my spontaneous reactions
3. Identifying signals- anger, boredom, purposelessness, depression/sadness, distancing
We walked to the marker for the Tropic of Cancer. We were hit with a misty rain. We walked on a concrete path next to the road. We saw the sunrise. I got back to the hotel and took a shower. It should be a sunny day today. I feel like I have been on this trip for a week. We have seen a lot. We have three more days to go. We will end up in Hsinchu.
We drove along the coastline. We stopped at the eight arches bridge. I walked across the bridge to the adjacent island. I picked up a few pebbles. The beach was composed of stones - large and small. It made an interesting clucking sound when the waves receded. A million stones banged against each other.
We drove and stopped a couple of times and saw the beautiful coastline with the incredible shades of blue water. The sky was a crystal clear blue. During one stop, our driver/tour guide backed into a tree and damaged the van. We ate lunch at a great place with awesome sashimi. We met the owner. The driver is trying to set me up with her daughter. I hope that she is cute. We stopped at the "stream goes uphill" sight. Supposedly, water moves uphill. It is an optical illusion. However, it is very convincing.
We drove along a scary single-lane two-way road on the mountainside. He assured me that it was safe, but two cars had difficulty being on the same road. We drove along flower-laden roads in town. The flowers were in full bloom and appealed to my feminine side: orange, pink, red, violet, yellow. Even a flower ignoramus such as myself could fully appreciate it. We made it. We are staying in a town called che-cheng or something like that. It is a small town with a great hotel. We dipped our feet in the fish pool where the fish nibbled on our toes. It tickles. Our hotel has a hot spring pool.
I went for a bath in the hot spring pool with my mom and uncle. There is some sort of festival going on in front of our hotel. They are performing a puppet show with loud chinese opera music.
I am waiting for dinner at 6 pm. Overall, it has been an impressive trip. I am very happy about it. Family, food, great scenery - it does not get better. I am chilling out on the balcony overlooking the pool area. A nice breeze, but overcast skies. I think it is going to rain tonight.
We had a great seafood dinner. I love shrimp. I am writing this message while having my feet nibbled by doctor fish. They feed on dead skin. It feels like I am being tickled. We went to see a natural gas fire after dinner. It was interesting, but not as cool as seeing lava go into water in Hawaii. I am just hanging out with my mom. I have a lot of dead skin because the fish are just feasting on me. It is the weirdest sensation. It has been a fascinating trip. I did not realize that Taiwan was such an interesting place.
We woke up at 6:30 am. I took a bath with hot spring water in our room tub. My mom says not to put toilet paper in the toilet. We should throw it in the basket. I think it is disgusting. It is a beautiful morning. My mom and ugoo took another public bath. I am offering my feet and legs for consumption by the doctor fish. I do not mind the doctor fish, except when they nibble on my big toe. That feels weird. Off to breakfast.
It was a buffet type of breakfast. Buns and assortments. There was a type of hot milk tea that I never had before. At first, I thought it was soy milk tea, but it is actually something else. Quite tasty. Another perfect morning weather-wise: blue sky and a few clouds. This hotel has been the best so far. Five star accommodation, food, public bath and doctor fish.
It has been a pretty good day. We drove along the coastline of South Taiwan. Blue skies and mildly warm. We went Ali Seafood. Same place as last night. The food was fresh seafood: eels, shrimp, fish. We went to the National Aquarium afterward. It was an impressive exhibit. I think that fish are boring, but this aquarium entertained me. We saw fish, eels, sting rays, penguins, seals, sharks, etc. Almost as good as scuba diving. We drove two hours to Kaohsiung thru countryside and small towns with small roads. Not as scenic, but Ok for seeing Taiwan inland. It was a long ride that I thought would never end. We are staying on the 54th floor of a luxury hotel. Amazing view of the city. The elevator is the best-smelling and fastest one I have ever been on. There are a lot of well-dressed beautiful women here. It is a classy place. I feel like a country bumpkin. It is quite a contrast. Last night, we stayed at a spa-hotel in a small back alley town. Tonight, we are staying in a skyscraper hotel in the second largest city in Taiwan.
We had shrimp for lunch. I am pretty good at eating it. First, I rip off its head, then I yank off its feet, then I peel off its scales. For dinner, we went to the night market and ate seafood. We rode the MRT. It opened seven years ago and is clean and artsy. It has a section with Italian glass lining the ceiling. This society is first world. Their public transit is better than ours. Also, we went for a boat ride along the Love River.
EC lessons: clubs, photos, blogs, parties, travels. Keep moving forward. Keep staying connected.
Last day of the trip. I am sad and happy at the same time. I have seen a lot of Taiwan and am happy about it. After a week of vacation, I normally just want to get back to the U.S. We will be driving around today and then, going on an express train heading to Hsinchu. I will be seeing my relatives for lunch tomorrow. We have stayed at some really interesting hotels. The first night, we stayed in a hotel situated in a canyon. The second night, we stayed at a place by the sea. The third night, we stayed at a place near a hot spring. Last night, we stayed in a skyscraper hotel overlooking the city. We had a buffet breakfast. It was a mixture of chinese and western breakfasts. The restaurant was on the 39th floor - with awesome views of the city. Ugoo gave me a shocking revelation: my cousin Jeremy became Muslim a couple of years ago. Overall, it was the most luxurious hotel that I have ever stayed at. However, I liked the spa-hotel better in terms of coziness and comfort and hominess (since I am a homey).
We went to the old British consulate. It was a steep climb up a few flight of stairs. Good view at the top - overlooking the sea. Then, we went to a local park/lake. We crossed the nine cornered bridge. It is similar to the eight arch bridge, except that it has nine corners instead of eight arches, it is flat instead of curved, it traverses two peninsula points instead of a land mass and an island. Other than those differences, they are exactly the same. It was a twenty minute walk. First gross out bathroom. We drove to a fancy mall and ate some noodles at the food court. It was the newest and most beautiful mall that I have ever seen. It was totally crowded. I ate some green tea ice cream. We drove to the high speed rail station to take the train. We said our good byes to Nicholas the tour guide. Second gross out bathroom. One stall was covered in stool or vomit. I did not look long enough to figure it out. We got on the train. The ride is only an hour and a half to Hsinchu. Ugoo and mom complained about the overall cost, but it was pretty darn cheap in my book. I had a great time. It was just the right length of time. We saw a lot of interesting things and stayed at a good variety of places and ate a ton of delicious entrees.
I finished reading the Ascent of Money by Niall Ferguson. It was a quick gloss of economic history. I would like to read a more detailed economic text.
Books that I would like to read: Soros, Samuelson, Hemingway.
Ways to gain knowledge: people interactions under different circumstances, books, analysis/writing, putting self into different situations and learning how to adapt.
We got to the Hsinchu train station. We took a shuttle bus to downtown Hsinchu. We walked for fifteen minutes, stopped at a cheap restaurant to eat, then walked another fifteen minutes before arriving at ugoo's place. His place is like his personality: a bit rough around the edges and unkempt. He drove me to my other uncle's place: my dad's younger brother. He is a bit older but looks the same. It was great to see him. I am staying in his house on the remodeled fourth floor. It is a phenomenal place. It has a bedroom and beautiful, large bathroom with a high tech shower. Pretty fancy. A friend of their family named Rex came over with his mom. His english was pretty good and his understanding of american culture was outstanding. He knew more american tv shows than I did. He is a freshman at Taoyuan University and is studying mechanical engineering. He hopes to study in the US some day. I hope that he makes it. I am going to sleep now. It is going to be a big "relatives get-together" kind of day tomorrow.
I had a weird dream last night. I dreamt that I was supposed to play lead guitar for a rock band. The band went out first and started playing. The crowd went wild with anticipation. I had a fancy new guitar that was going to blow away the crowd. I was supposed to go out there ten minutes after the band. However, I was delayed by something. I did not get out there for a few hours. Perhaps, I intentionally did not want to go out there. By then, the concert was over. Most of the crowd had left and the ones remaining were angry. I woke up. It is 7:30 am.
My uncle bought some breakfast. My uncle, aunt, and I went to pick up my mom. We met my other aunt, my dad's sister. The five of us drove around Hsinchu. We went to the harbor. It was windy. A lot of old fishing boats were docked. Then, we went to a park that was situated next to a waste incinerator. The park overlooked the sea. It was a cloudy and slightly chilly windy day. I wore a jacket. The park is located in a beautiful location, but it is next to an incinerator. There is a public pool next to the incinerator. My uncle assures me that it is safe. Has he ever heard of Love Canal? Also, the incinerator is housed in this artsy glass building; perhaps to make it more palatable to the public. We drove to a burial site with all of my ancestors on my dad's side of the family: six generations. There is a building on the site. It contains all of the cremated remains of my ancestors and other Hsinchu people. It was like a library, except that it had cremated remains instead of books. No check outs. We drove to a bookstore in downtown Hsinchu. It was pretty classy, like a barnes and nobles. I bought a couple of chinese vocabulary books. We drove to the restaurant for lunch with my relatives. About thirty people came out. Once again, the food was plentiful and high quality. We took a ton of pictures. Then, we drove to my ugoo's place. We walked over to the train station, bought a ticket, and boarded the train for a one hour ride. It is crowded (I am on the train now). I do not have a seat. We are going to meet another uncle, Dr. Tsai, who is head of a medical department in the military hospital in Taipei. He is one of my few normal relatives. In fact, he is supra-normal, since he is the most successful. Unfortunately, he is not a blood relative, but related by marriage only. Too bad I don't share more of his genes. Last time I was in Taiwan, he took me to a great little place to eat.
It was great to see my relatives. The difficulty lies in not being able to speak chinese. It is hard to communicate in any meaningful way. I sat at a table with my cousin, Yu Lin, her husband, and her 4 year old son. He is a cute kid. They lived in LA for one year,while he was a student at USC. My cousin F is in LA. He is trying to get a job with a pharmaceutical company.
We got to Taipei pretty early and found the hotel that we will meet Dr. Tsai. We were walking around and ran across a barber shop called "Just for Man". I will be getting a haircut. I cannot communicate the length I like. How do you say "use a number four clipper" in chinese? I got the haircut and it turned out well. It cost only eight dollars US. My mom was telling the cutter how to cut my hair. Despite that annoyance, it went well. We ate dinner on the top floor of the Sheraton Hotel. Uncle Tsai was in top form. He told a lot of stories. He is an entertaining kind of guy overall. It was a pretty fancy place. Very high quality food and ambiance.
We got on the TRA train. It is super crowded. Too many people are squeezed like sardines into this small train. It is the slow train and stops at every point from Taipei to Hsinchu. It will take an hour and a half to get home. We will awake at 5:30 am to go to the airport. My mom and I will catch a taxi to the airport.
It has been a great trip and has exceeded all of my expectations. I am glad that I went to Taiwan. I was pleasantly surprised by its natural beauty. I am ready to go back to my normal lifestyle. I have a lot of things to take care of.
That was a long day. We finally got back to Hsinchu. After arriving at the train station, we took a taxi to ugoo's house. He gave me ten tea pots to give away to friends in Seattle. We drove to my dad's brother's place. I showered and jumped into bed. I am exhausted. Tomorrow will be a long day on the plane.
I woke up at 5:20 am. I am ready to go home. I have seen enough. I have to go to work later this week. The flight time will be eleven hours with a two-hour layover. We ate breakfast. We are waiting for the taxi. It should be here at 6:30 am. I have one carry-on with my teapots and one large check-in bag. I am tired.
The taxi arrived on time. It took an hour to get to the airport. I am waiting to check in at the United gate. It is closed for now (which makes me a bit concerned that there is a different gate that I should check into). My mom's plane leaves one hour earlier than mine.
We checked in and got thru security without a problem. My mom took off for the gate. I tracked her down at her gate. She had the mis-impression that her plane was leaving. I found her talking to another Taiwanese passenger. I am hanging out at her gate. Later, I will go to my gate.
I think that the flight back will be faster than a blink of an eye. EC's techniques for connecting: clubs, travels, smile, eye contact, hugs, high fives, dance, singing. (Death anniversary is coming up, so my thoughts about her have returned)
I arrived at the gate for my flight. That was pretty painful. They had three lanes to perform security for hundreds of passengers going on connecting international flights. It was almost as bad as my experience at JFK in NYC. It was a fast flight. I had to cram my bag with the teapots into the overhead bin. I hope they did not break. My flight leaves in a couple of hours.
I am laying down on a few seats. The plane should be boarding soon. I am so eager to get home. I went looking for my mom, but she is not anywhere to be found. The airport has tv's everywhere. I have been watching world news on cnn.
I made it onto the plane. I cannot believe it. We took off at 6 pm. It is an eight hour flight.
The trip is over. What are the elements of a great trip?
1. Being with friends/family
2. Seeing natural wonders or special sights
3. Special activities
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I am still on the plane. It has been 7 hours so far, on a ten-hour flight. It has been very comfortable. I chose a seat with lots of leg room. The flight is not full. There is no one sitting on my right. I have a layover in Japan. I want to buy a bento or sushi. I look forward to it. I love the taste and nutritional value of japanese food.
I have not seen my relatives since 1991. It has been a long time.
My life is somewhat empty. I feel like I have no greater purpose or achievement to which I aspire. I ask: what am I doing?
I have to give my final toastmaster speech. I do not know what to talk about. I am at a loss for words. I have to inspire an audience. I cannot even inspire myself. I am inspired by Edmund Hillary: respect and admiration and won the hearts of all.
1. Winning respect thru achievement and skill
2. Winning hearts thru compassionate service.
Inspirations: Lance Armstrong, Teach for America, angels in caring., biker's toys for tots.
I am thinking about asking someone out. I have to pray about it. I am not sure. My life has not been straightforward.
I still have left knee pain: better with use, no point of tenderness, pain with extension of knee, lateral aspect of left knee.
I arrived in Japan. I am waiting for the plane to Taiwan. It is on time. I am tired. I need to go to the br, but it is full. I cannot get a seat. I have to hold it. I hope my mom is at the airport to pick me up. I have no back up plan.
I found a seat at the BR. hooray!! I feel so relieved - in more ways than one. I am almost there. I think that I take a lot of trips, just to have the feeling of "getting there". Taipei should be warmer than Tokyo. I lost a day. It is Saturday night now. I look forward to eating and seeing relatives. My life is pretty mundane. Does anything change? Maybe, I am lazy. I wish I had some yen. I would buy sushi. Who am I? What am I doing? I have no idea. I am Somebody. But who is it?
We are starting to board.
From now on, I want to take group trips. Two types exist for me: sight seeing and adventure.
Obama really is a global person: white, black, yellow. I am a narrow person: yellow, somewhat white.
It is amazing how the little things in life make a big difference. I had a dust speck caught under my contact lens. I popped out the lens and washed it in water. I put the lens back in my eye. I did it on the plane. Praise God I did not lose the lens. I feel so much better having cleaned it. Small things, like relieving myself in the br, make my experience so much better.
I made it! My mom met me at the airport with no problem. That was the difficult part since I had no plan B. I got thru customs quickly and picked up my luggage. I met my mom and then we wandered around for a while to look for a bus. We found the bus to Taipei. After a one-hour ride, we arrived at a stop near my aunt's place. I had to go to the br. I must have a digestion problem. My stomach is not adapting well to the food. We arrived after midnight. It has been a good trip. The plane ride was not too bad. I slept during entire trip from Tokyo to Taipei. I cannot believe I am here. It has been nearly twenty years. My aunt looks pretty young for seventy (actually she is sixty five). It is tough not speaking the language. My mom is the translator. Back then, I was such a different person. I was bookish and introverted. Still am. But my inner self has totally changed.
I have this overall feeling that my life is not leading up to anything. I have no family and no real purpose. I read "The Call" by Os Guiness. It has not really helped me. I am still clueless as to MY call. I think that overseas trips help me to get a better perspective on my life. I can step out of my regular life and examine some of my assumptions.
A generation has certainly passed. I am middle aged. I am not in the current generation.
I think that my developmental problems started early. I was Asian, but could not speak Chinese. Shame, self consciousness, introversion soon followed. My thinking turned inward. Success became an all encompassing goal. Everything else was secondary. That led to estrangement and social delay. My life took a bad turn. The calamity of failure turned me around. It re-aligned my thinking in a more proper way.
I woke up early. We went to a local place for a quick breakfast. Now, we will go to my cousin Peggy's place.
It was a great day. We went to the national museum. I saw a lot of interesting historical objects. I usually do not like museums, but this one was pleasurable. We had lunch on the fourth floor cafe. Afterward, we saw some more objects and went to see the Beitou hot springs. We rode buses and subways to get there. It was good weather - not too hot nor too cold. We saw the hotspring museum, the actual hot spring, and the library. Afterward, we went to a classy restaurant and had a satisfying meal. My time with the cousins was satisfying. They lived in the U.S. for 4 years. I was impressed by everything they saw. We went parted ways and I went to my aunt's home and had deserts. I saw my other cousin and his wife. He is a dentist. I went to sleep early.
It was a fun day today. We woke up early and drove to the Yangming mountain. We saw the cherry blossoms, but they were half bloomed. We walked around the park area. As we were driving away, we drove past the Chiang kai shek residence. At first, we thought it was closed on Monday. Luckily, during cherry blossom time, it was open. We had a tour guide who showed us around the house. It was an incredible experience. A beautiful house on the mountain with spectacular views. I was happy that we saw it. It was my mom's first time. We drove home. There was a huge traffic jam going up the mountain: single lane. We had beaten the rush; we were headed downward. I am so pleased that we went up early and saw everything in the morning. We were the only ones in CK Shek's house. We got back by noon. I took a nap after lunch. At 2 pm, we drove to Tamshian: fisherman's wharf. It was north of Taipei. One hour drive each way. We got back and met up with my aunt. We went to dinner at a fancy place. Overall, it was a good day. Tomorrow, we are going on a tour. The conversation occured between my mom and aunt. I cannot speak chinese. My uncle does not speak much.
How has EC influenced me?
1. Be politically active
2. Host parties
3. Constantly learn
4. Connect with more people
5. Travel more
My future plan: Dems, house, adventure trips, medical missions, blogs
We woke up at 6 am. After a quick breakfast, we got a ride from my uncle to the train station. We arrived an hour early. We met my younger uncle, ugoo. We took the train from Taipei to Hualien. Three hours. We were met by our tour guide, Mr Chen. Just call him Nicholas. He took us to a restaurant for lunch- decent authentic food in an old wooden structure. Then, we drove to Taroko park. We saw the global climate change exhibit and watched a nature film in an air conditioned auditorium. We drove to the gorge. We stopped a few times and went for leisurely strolls along the gorge. I took a ton of pictures. It was a beautiful day for walking. It was slightly overcast and somewhat windy. The scenery was spectacular: a gorge with a river, waterfalls, and stone cut outs. We arrived at our hotel at around 4 pm. We went to a local buddhist temple on the mountainside. It was a beautiful view of the gorge. I climbed up one of the temples. It was a bit frightening since the railing was low. I felt like I was going to fall over. It was incredibly peaceful. I think I could find myself if I spent a week meditating there. A bridge over the gorge leads to the temple plaza. After climbing a few stairs, the temple plaza is reached.
We went back to the hotel and showered off. We had dinner at 6pm. It was a great meal. Ugoo was a bit pissed off that the entire trip cost too much. For me, it was worth it. I think that it comes out to a thousand dollars per person for five days. That is not bad compared to all of my other vacations. Tomorrow, we have to wake up at 5:45 am. We will be going thru caves and along rivers.
We went to sleep last night at 7:30 pm. It was a long day, so I had no trouble falling right to sleep. I woke up at 5 am. I had some strange dreams last night. I dreamed of SA. It was the first time ever. She was pretty but older. I had no desire to be with her or possess her. I am not sure what that dream meant. Also, my left knee is back to normal. I thank God truly. It was a small miracle. It was hurting for a while. On the plane ride, it was stiff and painful. Now, it feels pretty good. I climbed a six-story temple yesterday and I did not feel any pain. Right now, it is 5:30 am and we are preparing to start hiking this morning. It is dark outside and we have to wear our headlamps or bring flashlights. What am I doing in life? That seems to be a persistent question. Living for the moment. I will meet my cousins, uncles, and aunts on Sunday.
We got back from the hike. Incredible hike!!! We hiked along a gorge. We ended up in two areas that were breath-takingly beautiful. One area was a convergence of waterfalls and rapids. We crossed a bridge and had spectacular views of the river below. Later, we got to the Water curtain cave. We put on ponchos and went into the cave. Water poured down on us. The roaring sound, feel of the water, and darkness of the tunnel made it a memorable sensuous experience. During the hike, we crossed thru many tunnels. I wore a head lamp. The total trip was about an hour. It was a flat and easy stroll thru very scenic areas. We got back to the hotel and had breakfast. I saw a beautiful chinese woman (with her boyfriend). All in all, it was a good start to the day. I think that we will drive along the coast now.
I am just hanging out by the gorge. Perfect weather - blue skies, humming river, canyon views. I walked across the bridge to the temple area. Today is the perfect day. The hotel looks like an old warehouse from the outside. From the inside, it is a five star hotel. The food is great.
I hiked up to some kind of memorial. I could not read the chinese characters on the marble wall. It was good exercise. The sun beat down on me as I trudged up the steps to the granite wall with the chinese characters. Once again, you guessed it: it had great views of the hotel and the gorge.
We went to another part of the taroko park. We saw the same nature film as yesterday. I was bored. Before the film, a taiwanese speaker spoke for ten minutes. It must be a chinese tradition for speakers to talk before films. I understood less than five percent of her talk.
It has been a great day. We drove out of the gorge and out of Hualien. We had a very good lunch. We ate some taiwanese seafood which was a special delicacy. It was a five star food experience. Then, we got some slushie deserts and drove out of town. We took a scenic road along the ocean. We stopped at an isolated beach area. We had to get out of the van and into another one which took us downhill to the beach area. It was an interesting spot. It had wooden statues of people and animals. I took a ton of pictures. We walked around the beach. There were very few people there. In fact, almost no one was there. After, we drove away along a sea front road. We stopped at another beach area on the side of the road and walked around. I think that we are in the south part of Hualien. We are staying at a quaint mom-pop type of hotel. Good views of the water and the mountain. Two things to mention. First, the Taiwan bathroom quality is not too bad. In fact, it is much better than what I remember. No gross out places. Not quite up to Japanese standards, but not too bad. Secondly, Ugoo is one strange dude. I am not sure which characteristic is strangest about him. He persistently belches. I think he has a medical disorder. Also, every time he talks, he seems pissed off. I think that his business is losing money and he is angry about it. He reminds me of the hunchback of Notre Dame. He is the hunchback of Hsinchu.
Our tour guide is a good guy. He speaks mandarin, so I understand only a fraction of what he says. He is pleasant and helpful.
Ugoo paid for the dinner. He does have some redeeming characteristics. It was the best seafood I have ever had. The fish and shrimp were freshly caught and alive prior to the meal. It was a run-down restaurant. The meal cost thirty dollars US. I have had much worse meals for a hundred bucks.
I think that I will turn in early tonight. Overall, it was a satisfying day. I ate well, I saw a lot of great scenes, and I hung out with my family. Pretty good time. Also, the weather was perfecto!! It was 70 with a nice sea breeze.
We woke up at 5 am. I went to sleep at 8pm last night. I have been sleeping pretty well. We will go for a walk on the beach.
If I had to live over again, I would do these things:
1. Ask SA about the situation and her feelings, instead of reacting in anger
2. Join clubs. Focus less on academics
3. Travel more
4. go to a small liberal arts school
Now/future:
1. Adventure trips
2. Singing
3. Public speaking
4. Making movies
5. Physical achievement: hike
6. Photos
I need to practice:
1. Moving forward
2. Holding in and re-considering my spontaneous reactions
3. Identifying signals- anger, boredom, purposelessness, depression/sadness, distancing
We walked to the marker for the Tropic of Cancer. We were hit with a misty rain. We walked on a concrete path next to the road. We saw the sunrise. I got back to the hotel and took a shower. It should be a sunny day today. I feel like I have been on this trip for a week. We have seen a lot. We have three more days to go. We will end up in Hsinchu.
We drove along the coastline. We stopped at the eight arches bridge. I walked across the bridge to the adjacent island. I picked up a few pebbles. The beach was composed of stones - large and small. It made an interesting clucking sound when the waves receded. A million stones banged against each other.
We drove and stopped a couple of times and saw the beautiful coastline with the incredible shades of blue water. The sky was a crystal clear blue. During one stop, our driver/tour guide backed into a tree and damaged the van. We ate lunch at a great place with awesome sashimi. We met the owner. The driver is trying to set me up with her daughter. I hope that she is cute. We stopped at the "stream goes uphill" sight. Supposedly, water moves uphill. It is an optical illusion. However, it is very convincing.
We drove along a scary single-lane two-way road on the mountainside. He assured me that it was safe, but two cars had difficulty being on the same road. We drove along flower-laden roads in town. The flowers were in full bloom and appealed to my feminine side: orange, pink, red, violet, yellow. Even a flower ignoramus such as myself could fully appreciate it. We made it. We are staying in a town called che-cheng or something like that. It is a small town with a great hotel. We dipped our feet in the fish pool where the fish nibbled on our toes. It tickles. Our hotel has a hot spring pool.
I went for a bath in the hot spring pool with my mom and uncle. There is some sort of festival going on in front of our hotel. They are performing a puppet show with loud chinese opera music.
I am waiting for dinner at 6 pm. Overall, it has been an impressive trip. I am very happy about it. Family, food, great scenery - it does not get better. I am chilling out on the balcony overlooking the pool area. A nice breeze, but overcast skies. I think it is going to rain tonight.
We had a great seafood dinner. I love shrimp. I am writing this message while having my feet nibbled by doctor fish. They feed on dead skin. It feels like I am being tickled. We went to see a natural gas fire after dinner. It was interesting, but not as cool as seeing lava go into water in Hawaii. I am just hanging out with my mom. I have a lot of dead skin because the fish are just feasting on me. It is the weirdest sensation. It has been a fascinating trip. I did not realize that Taiwan was such an interesting place.
We woke up at 6:30 am. I took a bath with hot spring water in our room tub. My mom says not to put toilet paper in the toilet. We should throw it in the basket. I think it is disgusting. It is a beautiful morning. My mom and ugoo took another public bath. I am offering my feet and legs for consumption by the doctor fish. I do not mind the doctor fish, except when they nibble on my big toe. That feels weird. Off to breakfast.
It was a buffet type of breakfast. Buns and assortments. There was a type of hot milk tea that I never had before. At first, I thought it was soy milk tea, but it is actually something else. Quite tasty. Another perfect morning weather-wise: blue sky and a few clouds. This hotel has been the best so far. Five star accommodation, food, public bath and doctor fish.
It has been a pretty good day. We drove along the coastline of South Taiwan. Blue skies and mildly warm. We went Ali Seafood. Same place as last night. The food was fresh seafood: eels, shrimp, fish. We went to the National Aquarium afterward. It was an impressive exhibit. I think that fish are boring, but this aquarium entertained me. We saw fish, eels, sting rays, penguins, seals, sharks, etc. Almost as good as scuba diving. We drove two hours to Kaohsiung thru countryside and small towns with small roads. Not as scenic, but Ok for seeing Taiwan inland. It was a long ride that I thought would never end. We are staying on the 54th floor of a luxury hotel. Amazing view of the city. The elevator is the best-smelling and fastest one I have ever been on. There are a lot of well-dressed beautiful women here. It is a classy place. I feel like a country bumpkin. It is quite a contrast. Last night, we stayed at a spa-hotel in a small back alley town. Tonight, we are staying in a skyscraper hotel in the second largest city in Taiwan.
We had shrimp for lunch. I am pretty good at eating it. First, I rip off its head, then I yank off its feet, then I peel off its scales. For dinner, we went to the night market and ate seafood. We rode the MRT. It opened seven years ago and is clean and artsy. It has a section with Italian glass lining the ceiling. This society is first world. Their public transit is better than ours. Also, we went for a boat ride along the Love River.
EC lessons: clubs, photos, blogs, parties, travels. Keep moving forward. Keep staying connected.
Last day of the trip. I am sad and happy at the same time. I have seen a lot of Taiwan and am happy about it. After a week of vacation, I normally just want to get back to the U.S. We will be driving around today and then, going on an express train heading to Hsinchu. I will be seeing my relatives for lunch tomorrow. We have stayed at some really interesting hotels. The first night, we stayed in a hotel situated in a canyon. The second night, we stayed at a place by the sea. The third night, we stayed at a place near a hot spring. Last night, we stayed in a skyscraper hotel overlooking the city. We had a buffet breakfast. It was a mixture of chinese and western breakfasts. The restaurant was on the 39th floor - with awesome views of the city. Ugoo gave me a shocking revelation: my cousin Jeremy became Muslim a couple of years ago. Overall, it was the most luxurious hotel that I have ever stayed at. However, I liked the spa-hotel better in terms of coziness and comfort and hominess (since I am a homey).
We went to the old British consulate. It was a steep climb up a few flight of stairs. Good view at the top - overlooking the sea. Then, we went to a local park/lake. We crossed the nine cornered bridge. It is similar to the eight arch bridge, except that it has nine corners instead of eight arches, it is flat instead of curved, it traverses two peninsula points instead of a land mass and an island. Other than those differences, they are exactly the same. It was a twenty minute walk. First gross out bathroom. We drove to a fancy mall and ate some noodles at the food court. It was the newest and most beautiful mall that I have ever seen. It was totally crowded. I ate some green tea ice cream. We drove to the high speed rail station to take the train. We said our good byes to Nicholas the tour guide. Second gross out bathroom. One stall was covered in stool or vomit. I did not look long enough to figure it out. We got on the train. The ride is only an hour and a half to Hsinchu. Ugoo and mom complained about the overall cost, but it was pretty darn cheap in my book. I had a great time. It was just the right length of time. We saw a lot of interesting things and stayed at a good variety of places and ate a ton of delicious entrees.
I finished reading the Ascent of Money by Niall Ferguson. It was a quick gloss of economic history. I would like to read a more detailed economic text.
Books that I would like to read: Soros, Samuelson, Hemingway.
Ways to gain knowledge: people interactions under different circumstances, books, analysis/writing, putting self into different situations and learning how to adapt.
We got to the Hsinchu train station. We took a shuttle bus to downtown Hsinchu. We walked for fifteen minutes, stopped at a cheap restaurant to eat, then walked another fifteen minutes before arriving at ugoo's place. His place is like his personality: a bit rough around the edges and unkempt. He drove me to my other uncle's place: my dad's younger brother. He is a bit older but looks the same. It was great to see him. I am staying in his house on the remodeled fourth floor. It is a phenomenal place. It has a bedroom and beautiful, large bathroom with a high tech shower. Pretty fancy. A friend of their family named Rex came over with his mom. His english was pretty good and his understanding of american culture was outstanding. He knew more american tv shows than I did. He is a freshman at Taoyuan University and is studying mechanical engineering. He hopes to study in the US some day. I hope that he makes it. I am going to sleep now. It is going to be a big "relatives get-together" kind of day tomorrow.
I had a weird dream last night. I dreamt that I was supposed to play lead guitar for a rock band. The band went out first and started playing. The crowd went wild with anticipation. I had a fancy new guitar that was going to blow away the crowd. I was supposed to go out there ten minutes after the band. However, I was delayed by something. I did not get out there for a few hours. Perhaps, I intentionally did not want to go out there. By then, the concert was over. Most of the crowd had left and the ones remaining were angry. I woke up. It is 7:30 am.
My uncle bought some breakfast. My uncle, aunt, and I went to pick up my mom. We met my other aunt, my dad's sister. The five of us drove around Hsinchu. We went to the harbor. It was windy. A lot of old fishing boats were docked. Then, we went to a park that was situated next to a waste incinerator. The park overlooked the sea. It was a cloudy and slightly chilly windy day. I wore a jacket. The park is located in a beautiful location, but it is next to an incinerator. There is a public pool next to the incinerator. My uncle assures me that it is safe. Has he ever heard of Love Canal? Also, the incinerator is housed in this artsy glass building; perhaps to make it more palatable to the public. We drove to a burial site with all of my ancestors on my dad's side of the family: six generations. There is a building on the site. It contains all of the cremated remains of my ancestors and other Hsinchu people. It was like a library, except that it had cremated remains instead of books. No check outs. We drove to a bookstore in downtown Hsinchu. It was pretty classy, like a barnes and nobles. I bought a couple of chinese vocabulary books. We drove to the restaurant for lunch with my relatives. About thirty people came out. Once again, the food was plentiful and high quality. We took a ton of pictures. Then, we drove to my ugoo's place. We walked over to the train station, bought a ticket, and boarded the train for a one hour ride. It is crowded (I am on the train now). I do not have a seat. We are going to meet another uncle, Dr. Tsai, who is head of a medical department in the military hospital in Taipei. He is one of my few normal relatives. In fact, he is supra-normal, since he is the most successful. Unfortunately, he is not a blood relative, but related by marriage only. Too bad I don't share more of his genes. Last time I was in Taiwan, he took me to a great little place to eat.
It was great to see my relatives. The difficulty lies in not being able to speak chinese. It is hard to communicate in any meaningful way. I sat at a table with my cousin, Yu Lin, her husband, and her 4 year old son. He is a cute kid. They lived in LA for one year,while he was a student at USC. My cousin F is in LA. He is trying to get a job with a pharmaceutical company.
We got to Taipei pretty early and found the hotel that we will meet Dr. Tsai. We were walking around and ran across a barber shop called "Just for Man". I will be getting a haircut. I cannot communicate the length I like. How do you say "use a number four clipper" in chinese? I got the haircut and it turned out well. It cost only eight dollars US. My mom was telling the cutter how to cut my hair. Despite that annoyance, it went well. We ate dinner on the top floor of the Sheraton Hotel. Uncle Tsai was in top form. He told a lot of stories. He is an entertaining kind of guy overall. It was a pretty fancy place. Very high quality food and ambiance.
We got on the TRA train. It is super crowded. Too many people are squeezed like sardines into this small train. It is the slow train and stops at every point from Taipei to Hsinchu. It will take an hour and a half to get home. We will awake at 5:30 am to go to the airport. My mom and I will catch a taxi to the airport.
It has been a great trip and has exceeded all of my expectations. I am glad that I went to Taiwan. I was pleasantly surprised by its natural beauty. I am ready to go back to my normal lifestyle. I have a lot of things to take care of.
That was a long day. We finally got back to Hsinchu. After arriving at the train station, we took a taxi to ugoo's house. He gave me ten tea pots to give away to friends in Seattle. We drove to my dad's brother's place. I showered and jumped into bed. I am exhausted. Tomorrow will be a long day on the plane.
I woke up at 5:20 am. I am ready to go home. I have seen enough. I have to go to work later this week. The flight time will be eleven hours with a two-hour layover. We ate breakfast. We are waiting for the taxi. It should be here at 6:30 am. I have one carry-on with my teapots and one large check-in bag. I am tired.
The taxi arrived on time. It took an hour to get to the airport. I am waiting to check in at the United gate. It is closed for now (which makes me a bit concerned that there is a different gate that I should check into). My mom's plane leaves one hour earlier than mine.
We checked in and got thru security without a problem. My mom took off for the gate. I tracked her down at her gate. She had the mis-impression that her plane was leaving. I found her talking to another Taiwanese passenger. I am hanging out at her gate. Later, I will go to my gate.
I think that the flight back will be faster than a blink of an eye. EC's techniques for connecting: clubs, travels, smile, eye contact, hugs, high fives, dance, singing. (Death anniversary is coming up, so my thoughts about her have returned)
I arrived at the gate for my flight. That was pretty painful. They had three lanes to perform security for hundreds of passengers going on connecting international flights. It was almost as bad as my experience at JFK in NYC. It was a fast flight. I had to cram my bag with the teapots into the overhead bin. I hope they did not break. My flight leaves in a couple of hours.
I am laying down on a few seats. The plane should be boarding soon. I am so eager to get home. I went looking for my mom, but she is not anywhere to be found. The airport has tv's everywhere. I have been watching world news on cnn.
I made it onto the plane. I cannot believe it. We took off at 6 pm. It is an eight hour flight.
The trip is over. What are the elements of a great trip?
1. Being with friends/family
2. Seeing natural wonders or special sights
3. Special activities
Monday, March 2, 2009
Grand Canyon
I am here. Blizzard! Ugh. I did not think it would snow in Arizona. It is a desert. Yes, we have snow. I hope it goes well. I start the hike tomorrow. I caught the bus to downtown flagstaff. I missed the stop and rode the bus for half an hour. No problem. It was warm on the bus. A wheelchair bound person got on. It took only a few minutes for her to get on. I wandered around flagstaff. Not much to see. I saw Mark's store. Very classy place. I found the Four Season's guide shop. I have a meeting at 4 pm. I hiked over to barne's and nobles. It was a 15 minute walk. I am going to relax and read. What am I doing here? Good question. Hiking. Escaping. Seeking adventure. Putting myself out there.
I wandered around downtown flagstaff. I bought a few things: wool socks, neck guard. I met Brian and Mark. I will be hiking with Mark. Our guide is Bob. I hope I can make it. It was a blizzard today. I hope it won't be too cold. I ate at the worst chinese food ever. I felt like crap afterward.
It has been a great day. I woke up at 6am by wake up call. I set my alarm for too late. I forgot it was mountain time. I packed up and went to the lobby. I met Bob at 6:50 am - exact meeting time. We went back to the shop and met Mark. We drove over to the grand canyon. It has been snowy and cold. The first day has been OK, except for the weather. Snow storms and rain have dampened the experience. Overall, it has been a good experience and I am hiking with good people. It was all downhill. Great scenes. But, during one part we were pelted with ice/snow. It was somewhat painful, but we made it. We are camped at phantom ranch. There are not too many overnighters. It is going to be cold. I am hoping for a peaceful night of rest. I can hear the rush of one of the tributaries to the colorado river. It is the beautiful hum of nature: divine, constant, peaceful. We will be eating dinner soon. I hope it stops raining. We hiked down the south kaibab trail. It is nice descent. We passed by multiple mule trains. They left nice presents and puddles for us. The "presents" look like green goat cheese balls - like the kind I ate in Italy. The trip has been good.
We ate dinner. Bob cooked a great meal: burritos. I had to go to the BR. It was amazingly clean. I was shocked. It is drizzling outside so I will turn in early. Bob, the guide, is an art teacher. Mark is a forensics scientist fron NZ: kiwi. My headlamp works. Thank God.
Ok. I am completely miserable. It is so wet and so cold. I have to pee, but I do not want to leave the tent. I paid money for this? My tent is totally soaked. Tomorrow I will have to wear cold and damp clothes. What am I doing here? The views, the views. That's right. Keep reminding myself. Best parts: views, hiking partners, food, bathroom cleanliness. Worst parts: rain, cold
Yippeee! I did it. I made a daring dash to pee in a bush. Success. I feel better now. It is snowing and raining. I don't think it can get worse.
It was a great hiking day. I woke up at 1 am, and found my clothes to be soaked. My tent was sitting in a puddle. I went to the bathroom and tried to dry my clothes under the air blower. I was half successful. I went back to sleep. The night was quite miserable. But today, the weather was phenomenal: blue skies, minimal clouds, warm at times. The views were awesome. We saw waterfalls, the colorado river, bridges, streams, and the canyon. The hike along bright angel trail was awesome. No snow or rain were seen. We hiked five miles to Indian garden camp. We went up 1500 feet total. One part was called devil's corkscrew. It was particularly steep. Tomorrow we will climb up 3000 feet in 4.6 miles. It will be a steep climb. I hope we make it up in good time because I have a plane to catch at 5 pm. When we reached camp, we set up the tents, packed up the food, and went on a hike to plateau point. It was three miles round trip on flat trails. The trail was not in good shape : mud, mule dung. It was a good side trip. It took us to the edge of the grand canyon and we had panoramic views. It was windy and chilly. Overall, it was a must-see place. I am so glad to be alive. It has been a tremendous experience in terms of scenery, people, endurance/workout. The food has been surprisingly good. We had a bagel sandwich with chips for lunch. Dinner was pasta with olive oil. Last night, we had cold pasta from a bag for lunch, and burritos for dinner. The bathroom at phantom ranch was shockingly clean, like japanese br. Tonight the bathroom is a septic tank. The weather is better tonight. No rain, just cold and wind. Bob said it was unusual to have snow on the ground. We have it, so we are seeing something unique. No mules were seen, but a lot of presents were noted. There was a ton of snow last night. The mule trips were canceled. Flagstaff had a foot of snow and I40 was closed. Luckily, we came a day earlier. I pray that tomorrow my body will be able to make it up to the top, safety for the group, and safe plane ride back to Seattle.
It is midnight and freezing cold. Camping and hiking make me think about the necessities of life. My thoughts become simplified. What should I eat? When should I drink water? Should I piss now or later? How can I keep warm? How are my muscles feeling? Where should I put up the tent? Right now, I am thinking: should I piss now or later? It is so cold outside. I would rather hold it.
I will think of good memories. Since high school, my best non- academic memories include: Jackson hole, Jim M, Bert N., chien tan/taiwan, house party, nu, AE (steelers, hanging out), James W hanging out, Vince L hanging out, hanging with Carol B, sledding in Hershey, dinners after S and L with Chao, crossroads, parties/bbq at pbc, parties at the mansion, medical school graduation party, super bowl party at Joe L, london trip, family trips to vegas and hawaii, japan trip, egypt, scuba in bahamas and hawaii, Tahoe trip, Italy trip, Paris trip, toastmasters, massage.
The best times involve others (friends, church, others). The second-best involve special events. The third-best are international trips alone. I am amazed that EC figured it out at such an early age.
Top experiences: SA, getting into Penn, pbc parties and hanging out, now (job, money, time to travel)
Worst experiences: aloneness (no connection, nothing to do on weekends), anger about rudeness, lies, and rejection, no Christ.
Ultimate best experience: short term medical missions with a friend.
Other great experiences: camping with friends, romantic trip with wife, playing music concert with a group, direct a movie, speak in front of thousands, hosting a political party, international adventure trips with others, winning an election.
EC has taught me the importance of blogging/e-mailing/facebooking/texting, motivated me to travel, how to be more active in life, how to have fun, how to get the most out of my life.
We woke up around 6 am. It was a good night without rain or snow. We ate breakfast and packed up. I started up the trail at 7:30 am. It was an exhausting hike. The first rest stop was @ 1.6 miles. It was not too bad: only a mild elevation gain. My legs were still fresh, so I felt pretty good about it. The views were spectacular. I loved it. No rain or snow; only blue skies. The second part was steeper. It was 1.5 miles away. My legs were definitely becoming more fatigued. I was stopping a lot and drinking a lot of water. I barely made it to the second stop. The trail was covered in packed snow. It was somewhat painful trudging up in the snow, but I am glad it was not mud. The third stop was the top. I climbed up pretty slowly. I ran out of water in the middle. "One step at a time". I was relieved to see the Kolb house which sits at the top. I was tired out from three days of hiking. I had very little reserve. My left knee was aching for some reason. It never ached before. Maybe, I sprained it. Anyway, I was glad that I made it to the top. We caught the shuttle right away. Back in the parking lot, we ate lunch, packed up our stuff, and drove off. I felt like I really accomplished something over the past three days. It met all of my expectations, despite the bad weather and fatigue. I survived some pretty harsh conditions. Bob dropped me off at the airport. Hiking forces me to think about next basic move. I can take my mind off all of the complexities of the world. It is the best psychotherapy. Move forward and focus.
I wandered around downtown flagstaff. I bought a few things: wool socks, neck guard. I met Brian and Mark. I will be hiking with Mark. Our guide is Bob. I hope I can make it. It was a blizzard today. I hope it won't be too cold. I ate at the worst chinese food ever. I felt like crap afterward.
It has been a great day. I woke up at 6am by wake up call. I set my alarm for too late. I forgot it was mountain time. I packed up and went to the lobby. I met Bob at 6:50 am - exact meeting time. We went back to the shop and met Mark. We drove over to the grand canyon. It has been snowy and cold. The first day has been OK, except for the weather. Snow storms and rain have dampened the experience. Overall, it has been a good experience and I am hiking with good people. It was all downhill. Great scenes. But, during one part we were pelted with ice/snow. It was somewhat painful, but we made it. We are camped at phantom ranch. There are not too many overnighters. It is going to be cold. I am hoping for a peaceful night of rest. I can hear the rush of one of the tributaries to the colorado river. It is the beautiful hum of nature: divine, constant, peaceful. We will be eating dinner soon. I hope it stops raining. We hiked down the south kaibab trail. It is nice descent. We passed by multiple mule trains. They left nice presents and puddles for us. The "presents" look like green goat cheese balls - like the kind I ate in Italy. The trip has been good.
We ate dinner. Bob cooked a great meal: burritos. I had to go to the BR. It was amazingly clean. I was shocked. It is drizzling outside so I will turn in early. Bob, the guide, is an art teacher. Mark is a forensics scientist fron NZ: kiwi. My headlamp works. Thank God.
Ok. I am completely miserable. It is so wet and so cold. I have to pee, but I do not want to leave the tent. I paid money for this? My tent is totally soaked. Tomorrow I will have to wear cold and damp clothes. What am I doing here? The views, the views. That's right. Keep reminding myself. Best parts: views, hiking partners, food, bathroom cleanliness. Worst parts: rain, cold
Yippeee! I did it. I made a daring dash to pee in a bush. Success. I feel better now. It is snowing and raining. I don't think it can get worse.
It was a great hiking day. I woke up at 1 am, and found my clothes to be soaked. My tent was sitting in a puddle. I went to the bathroom and tried to dry my clothes under the air blower. I was half successful. I went back to sleep. The night was quite miserable. But today, the weather was phenomenal: blue skies, minimal clouds, warm at times. The views were awesome. We saw waterfalls, the colorado river, bridges, streams, and the canyon. The hike along bright angel trail was awesome. No snow or rain were seen. We hiked five miles to Indian garden camp. We went up 1500 feet total. One part was called devil's corkscrew. It was particularly steep. Tomorrow we will climb up 3000 feet in 4.6 miles. It will be a steep climb. I hope we make it up in good time because I have a plane to catch at 5 pm. When we reached camp, we set up the tents, packed up the food, and went on a hike to plateau point. It was three miles round trip on flat trails. The trail was not in good shape : mud, mule dung. It was a good side trip. It took us to the edge of the grand canyon and we had panoramic views. It was windy and chilly. Overall, it was a must-see place. I am so glad to be alive. It has been a tremendous experience in terms of scenery, people, endurance/workout. The food has been surprisingly good. We had a bagel sandwich with chips for lunch. Dinner was pasta with olive oil. Last night, we had cold pasta from a bag for lunch, and burritos for dinner. The bathroom at phantom ranch was shockingly clean, like japanese br. Tonight the bathroom is a septic tank. The weather is better tonight. No rain, just cold and wind. Bob said it was unusual to have snow on the ground. We have it, so we are seeing something unique. No mules were seen, but a lot of presents were noted. There was a ton of snow last night. The mule trips were canceled. Flagstaff had a foot of snow and I40 was closed. Luckily, we came a day earlier. I pray that tomorrow my body will be able to make it up to the top, safety for the group, and safe plane ride back to Seattle.
It is midnight and freezing cold. Camping and hiking make me think about the necessities of life. My thoughts become simplified. What should I eat? When should I drink water? Should I piss now or later? How can I keep warm? How are my muscles feeling? Where should I put up the tent? Right now, I am thinking: should I piss now or later? It is so cold outside. I would rather hold it.
I will think of good memories. Since high school, my best non- academic memories include: Jackson hole, Jim M, Bert N., chien tan/taiwan, house party, nu, AE (steelers, hanging out), James W hanging out, Vince L hanging out, hanging with Carol B, sledding in Hershey, dinners after S and L with Chao, crossroads, parties/bbq at pbc, parties at the mansion, medical school graduation party, super bowl party at Joe L, london trip, family trips to vegas and hawaii, japan trip, egypt, scuba in bahamas and hawaii, Tahoe trip, Italy trip, Paris trip, toastmasters, massage.
The best times involve others (friends, church, others). The second-best involve special events. The third-best are international trips alone. I am amazed that EC figured it out at such an early age.
Top experiences: SA, getting into Penn, pbc parties and hanging out, now (job, money, time to travel)
Worst experiences: aloneness (no connection, nothing to do on weekends), anger about rudeness, lies, and rejection, no Christ.
Ultimate best experience: short term medical missions with a friend.
Other great experiences: camping with friends, romantic trip with wife, playing music concert with a group, direct a movie, speak in front of thousands, hosting a political party, international adventure trips with others, winning an election.
EC has taught me the importance of blogging/e-mailing/facebooking/texting, motivated me to travel, how to be more active in life, how to have fun, how to get the most out of my life.
We woke up around 6 am. It was a good night without rain or snow. We ate breakfast and packed up. I started up the trail at 7:30 am. It was an exhausting hike. The first rest stop was @ 1.6 miles. It was not too bad: only a mild elevation gain. My legs were still fresh, so I felt pretty good about it. The views were spectacular. I loved it. No rain or snow; only blue skies. The second part was steeper. It was 1.5 miles away. My legs were definitely becoming more fatigued. I was stopping a lot and drinking a lot of water. I barely made it to the second stop. The trail was covered in packed snow. It was somewhat painful trudging up in the snow, but I am glad it was not mud. The third stop was the top. I climbed up pretty slowly. I ran out of water in the middle. "One step at a time". I was relieved to see the Kolb house which sits at the top. I was tired out from three days of hiking. I had very little reserve. My left knee was aching for some reason. It never ached before. Maybe, I sprained it. Anyway, I was glad that I made it to the top. We caught the shuttle right away. Back in the parking lot, we ate lunch, packed up our stuff, and drove off. I felt like I really accomplished something over the past three days. It met all of my expectations, despite the bad weather and fatigue. I survived some pretty harsh conditions. Bob dropped me off at the airport. Hiking forces me to think about next basic move. I can take my mind off all of the complexities of the world. It is the best psychotherapy. Move forward and focus.
Thursday, January 22, 2009
blackberry
I can post using my blackberry. How awesome? I can post from any location in the U.S. And Canada.
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
Tahoe
I went to Lake Tahoe this past weekend. It was an incredible weekend. I flew into the Sacramento on Friday afternoon. I was picked up at the airport by my friend VL. There was a lot of traffic. We went to Costco to buy some food. Then, we went to Carmichael, CA to meet some friends to drive over to Tahoe together. The friend T brought the high school son of his manager, M. We met up with a woman, C, that VL met at a singles conference. We drove over to pick up another woman, J. Overall, there were eight people. Two other people, PC and GS, met us at Tahoe.
It was a good drive up to the cabin. The roads were cleared. The snow was pushed to the side of the road. The driveway in front of the cabin was slightly downhill and frozen. T's car got stuck and it took a half-hour to get the car out on Sunday.
We all arrived on at the cabin safely. The cabin was great. It was a quaint 2 bedroom, 2 bathroom place. It was a smallish living room and kitchen, but enough space for all of us. It was well-decorated. VL rented it, sight unseen. I thought that we were going to be staying at a Motel 6. This living arrangement was definitely superior.
Initially, I was annoyed by the "major production" of this trip. I called VL three weeks ago to plan a small trip. It morphed into a trip involving a lot of people. But, I had a great time. I'm glad that it became a larger group. I was a bit irritated with VL initially, but how can anyone really be angry with VL? He is the most humble, gracious, and generous person on earth. The more people who are involved in any trip, the more "complications" and "interests" arise. My only regret about the trip was that I didn't get a chance to ski with VL too often. The purpose was to go to Tahoe to spend time hanging out and skiing with VL, but that time was cut short. VL was so gracious that he "sacrificed" skiing, in order to go snow shoeing with the women, who were not skilled at skiing. Next time, we will go skiing in a smaller group.
I learned about myself. I'm naturally introverted. I like things to go smoothly and to go "as expected". I don't like complications. I'm selfish and self-absorbed. I'm lazy. I have less energy than most people. I like to "do things" and then, "move on". It explains why I am single. I view anything that diverts me from "the task" or "the expected" as an irritation. I have to learn to "go with the flow." I have trouble adapting to the unknown and to change. I'm rigid and self-directed and self-absorbed. I have to make an effort to look outward and to go with the flow, like EC. What would EC do in this social situation?
I learned a lot from VL once again. He always reaches out to others and considers others' interests. He is very generous. He is a good example for me. I am somewhat opposite in outlook.
The slopes of Tahoe are incredible. It was blue skies throughout the weekend. There was good snow with few ice patches. The runs were long. We went to two places: Sierra and Kirkwood. I had a better day at Sierra. I had some good runs. One run was a bit scary. I lost control and went down the mountain at break neck speed. Thank God I survived. I have to learn to slow down and go side to side. Prior to skiing, my zipper got stuck as I was zipping up my coat. I tugged on it and the coat "exploded"; feathers flew out all over the place. C was gracious enough to sew it back together. I will donate it to charity.
I felt great on the slopes. The tranquility in riding up on the chairlift and then, gliding down the mountain, was phenomenal. I loved it !!
After two days of skiing, we drove back to Sacramento. I was a bit annoyed (my selfishness revealed itself and poked out its ugly head). I wanted to see the Steeler game at a local bar, but since we had so many people, we decided to drive back to Sacramento to watch the game at TGIF. We missed the first half. It was OK. The Steelers won, so it was all GOOD. Exciting game. Polamalu made a great interception that solidified the victory.
The "weekend" ended in the perfect way. PC, VL, and I went to a chinese restaurant in SF. It was situated at the end of a peninsula. It was perfect. We had dimsum. We looked out into the Bay. We had a great conversation. After a quick picture with the bay in the background, VL took me to the airport.
It was a nice break for me. Meeting new people and spending time with old friends is a rare combination. It was a great weekend overall. I hope that, God willing, I can have many more wonderful weekends.
It was a good drive up to the cabin. The roads were cleared. The snow was pushed to the side of the road. The driveway in front of the cabin was slightly downhill and frozen. T's car got stuck and it took a half-hour to get the car out on Sunday.
We all arrived on at the cabin safely. The cabin was great. It was a quaint 2 bedroom, 2 bathroom place. It was a smallish living room and kitchen, but enough space for all of us. It was well-decorated. VL rented it, sight unseen. I thought that we were going to be staying at a Motel 6. This living arrangement was definitely superior.
Initially, I was annoyed by the "major production" of this trip. I called VL three weeks ago to plan a small trip. It morphed into a trip involving a lot of people. But, I had a great time. I'm glad that it became a larger group. I was a bit irritated with VL initially, but how can anyone really be angry with VL? He is the most humble, gracious, and generous person on earth. The more people who are involved in any trip, the more "complications" and "interests" arise. My only regret about the trip was that I didn't get a chance to ski with VL too often. The purpose was to go to Tahoe to spend time hanging out and skiing with VL, but that time was cut short. VL was so gracious that he "sacrificed" skiing, in order to go snow shoeing with the women, who were not skilled at skiing. Next time, we will go skiing in a smaller group.
I learned about myself. I'm naturally introverted. I like things to go smoothly and to go "as expected". I don't like complications. I'm selfish and self-absorbed. I'm lazy. I have less energy than most people. I like to "do things" and then, "move on". It explains why I am single. I view anything that diverts me from "the task" or "the expected" as an irritation. I have to learn to "go with the flow." I have trouble adapting to the unknown and to change. I'm rigid and self-directed and self-absorbed. I have to make an effort to look outward and to go with the flow, like EC. What would EC do in this social situation?
I learned a lot from VL once again. He always reaches out to others and considers others' interests. He is very generous. He is a good example for me. I am somewhat opposite in outlook.
The slopes of Tahoe are incredible. It was blue skies throughout the weekend. There was good snow with few ice patches. The runs were long. We went to two places: Sierra and Kirkwood. I had a better day at Sierra. I had some good runs. One run was a bit scary. I lost control and went down the mountain at break neck speed. Thank God I survived. I have to learn to slow down and go side to side. Prior to skiing, my zipper got stuck as I was zipping up my coat. I tugged on it and the coat "exploded"; feathers flew out all over the place. C was gracious enough to sew it back together. I will donate it to charity.
I felt great on the slopes. The tranquility in riding up on the chairlift and then, gliding down the mountain, was phenomenal. I loved it !!
After two days of skiing, we drove back to Sacramento. I was a bit annoyed (my selfishness revealed itself and poked out its ugly head). I wanted to see the Steeler game at a local bar, but since we had so many people, we decided to drive back to Sacramento to watch the game at TGIF. We missed the first half. It was OK. The Steelers won, so it was all GOOD. Exciting game. Polamalu made a great interception that solidified the victory.
The "weekend" ended in the perfect way. PC, VL, and I went to a chinese restaurant in SF. It was situated at the end of a peninsula. It was perfect. We had dimsum. We looked out into the Bay. We had a great conversation. After a quick picture with the bay in the background, VL took me to the airport.
It was a nice break for me. Meeting new people and spending time with old friends is a rare combination. It was a great weekend overall. I hope that, God willing, I can have many more wonderful weekends.
start
I want to record my travels in this blog.
Be prepared to hear stories that will astound you :). My goal is to tell the stories - big and small - about universal humanity.
Be prepared to hear stories that will astound you :). My goal is to tell the stories - big and small - about universal humanity.
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